The TBA’s International Law Forum is now available online in a 1-Click package! This virtual three-hour forum will discuss the impact of COVID-19 on the global market by visiting three areas: business, finance and medicine. Presenters will discuss experience in their industry and what is needed to rebound from the epidemic. Not an International Law Section member? Join the section now.

The Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands will continue its weekly Facebook Live Q&A Wednesday at noon CDT. LAS attorney Patricia Jones will host this week’s show, which will cover mortgage payments. LAS launched the show earlier this month to answer frequently asked questions relating to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands will hold two legal clinics by phone this week. On Wednesday, LAS will hold a clinic specifically for veterans from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Then on Thursday, a general legal clinic will be held from 3 - 4:30 p.m. Those needing assistance can call 800-238-1443 during any of these times. Lawyers interested in volunteering for the clinics should email Kendra Cheek. 

The country is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution this year, and the TBA’s virtual convention, being held entirely online the week of June 15, will include a special program marking this milestone and celebrating the role Tennessee played in the ratification process. Join us Thursday, June 18, for a conversation with noted book author and speaker Elaine Weiss. Then in the afternoon, attend the virtual Lawyers Lunch and watch as TBA President Sarah Sheppeard passes the gavel to Michelle Greenway Sellers and Sellers talks about her upcoming year. That event will be available on Zoom and live streamed on TBA’s Facebook and YouTube pages. Make sure to register to take advantage of all these great free programs.

The 26th annual "Ode to Otha" event, hosted by Neal & Harwell's Bill Ramsey, will be held virtually on May 30 from 2 to 9 p.m. The event celebrates the birthday of legendary musician Otha Turner while also raising money for Second Harvest Food Bank. The celebration is normally held in Nashville each year, but due to concerns surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, the block party has gone virtual. See the lineup of musicians and get information on accessing the live stream. Donations to Second Harvest Food Bank can be made here.

Sen. Lamar Alexander told reporters today that university presidents across the state have concerns about facing legal actions for reopening in the fall, WPLN reports. The Republican senator, who serves as chairman of the U.S. Senate’s Education Committee, said that members of his party would push for liability protections for universities if a new COVID-19 relief bill is passed.  Alexander said a failure to do this could make what has been an already “difficult financial year” even more difficult. He also said more testing will be available for universities and businesses before the beginning of the fall semester.

Attorney General Herbert Slatery has filed a request asking the Tennessee Supreme Court to intervene in the lawsuit against Gov. Bill Lee’s education savings account program, the Daily Memphian reports. The State Court of Appeals on Tuesday denied a request to allow the state to implement the voucher program while the court decided on its constitutionality. Lee said in a press conference today that Slatery’s motion seeks to lift an injunction from Davidson County Chancery Court so that the state can move forward in time for the school year in August. The Court of Appeals is not scheduled to hear oral arguments until Aug. 5, the day after school starts in Metro Nashville and just one week before class opens in Shelby County Schools.

A ruling from the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals earlier this month will allow three lawsuits stemming from the 2018 “Operation Candy Crush” sting in Rutherford County to continue moving forward, the Daily News Journal reports. Seventeen business owners were arrested in the sting that targeted stores for illegally selling CBD-based products, but all charges were later dropped. The lawsuits claim the defendants, Rutherford County Sheriff Mike Fitzhugh, Assistant District Attorney John Zimmerman and District Attorney General Jennings Jones, were motivated by conspiracy to violate the plaintiffs’ rights. District Court Judge Aleta Trauger denied the defendants’ motion to dismiss in March 2019, prompting the appeal to the higher court. The 6th Circuit found that none of the defendants can claim immunity, with Circuit Judge Julia Smith Gibbons writing in the court’s opinion that Jones and Zimmerman were “objectively unreasonable in pushing the operation forward without probable cause.”

Attorney General Herbert Slatery today announced he has joined a bipartisan coalition of state attorneys general asking Congress to pass the Safeguarding America’s First Responders Act. Under that bill, families of first responders who have died or been totally disabled as a result of COVID-19 would receive the same federal benefits extended to first responders, or their survivors, otherwise killed or injured in the line of duty. Federal law currently allows survivors to access only certain benefits if they provide evidence that proves their family member contracted COVID-19 while on duty. The legislation would establish a temporary presumption that first responders contracted the virus while on duty if diagnosed within 45 days of their last shift. This legislation passed through the U.S. Senate and is currently being considered by the House of Representatives. Read the letter Slatery and 51 attorneys general sent today to Congress.

The Music City Legal Hackers group is hosting a virtual meetup next week to discuss document automation and how it can be used to serve clients in the pandemic and beyond. Thomas Officer, co-founder and design lead at Community.Lawyer, will lead the Zoom presentation on how other legal professionals are using homemade legal automations to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, with one example being a guided interview that helps tenants send letters to their landlord. The meetup will take place on May 27 at 5:30 p.m. with a 40-minute presentation followed by open Q&A and discussion. Get registered online or email Cat Moon with any questions. Participants will receive Zoom login instructions on the day of the event. Music City Legal Hackers is sponsored by Vanderbilt Law’s Program on Law and Innovation.